1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a wire guide and optical fiber storage spool for use with multimedia patch panels.
2. Description of the Related Art
In many applications, connections are required for more than one type of transmission medium to establish signal transmission paths. For example, many modern or upgraded buildings have communications connection closets with patch panels housing different types of connectors to establish connections between external networks and devices located in the building using not only conductive wires as the transmission medium, but also optical fibers. Because this type of patch panel generally serves a large number of multimedia connections, the slack of the wires and optical fibers connected by the connectors in the patch panel must be carefully managed. This management is necessary to aid a service person in locating connections of interest as well as to protect the wires and particularly the relatively fragile optical fibers, from damage that would likely occur if the slack wires or optical fibers are left dangling without any organization or protection.
In patch panels designed solely for connectors for conductive wires, wire guides attached to the patch panel have been used to organize and confine the conductive wires for the organization and protection of the slack thereof. Also, in patch panels adapted only for connectors for optical fibers, storage spools attached to the patch panel have been used to store the slack of the optical fibers for the protection and organization thereof. However, if a wire guide and storage spool as described above are attached to a patch panel for multimedia connections, the storage spool obstructs the path along which the wires are fed via the wire guides. Therefore, a wire guide and optical fiber storage spool which can be used effectively together for multimedia connections in a patch panel, would be highly desirable.
Another problem that occurs with wire guides and optical fiber storage spools for use with a patch panel is the tendency of the wire guides and/or spool to become disengaged from the patch panel, particularly if the wires or optical fibers are pulled or if the wire guide or spool is inadvertently struck by a service person. If a wire guide or spool becomes disengaged from the patch panel, the wires or optical fibers can be damaged or exposed to damage resulting in deterioration or interruption of signal transmission on the wires or optical fibers. Therefore, a wire guide and optical fiber storage spool that will not become accidentally disengaged from a patch panel, would be very beneficial.